Resurrection Sunday 2018
Easter Service
Pastor Bruce A. Shields
House of Faith
Church | www.PS127.org
| www.TruthDigest.org
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SERMON INTRODUCTION
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE
Isaiah 53
Who has believed our message and to whom has the
arm of the Lord been
revealed? 2 He grew up before him like a
tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or
majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should
desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of
suffering, and familiar with pain.
Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.
Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.
4 Surely
he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by
God, stricken by him, and afflicted.
5 But he
was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his
wounds we are healed.
6 We all,
like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7 He was
oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a
lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he
did not open his mouth.
8 By
oppression and judgment he was taken away. Yet who of his generation
protested?
For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was punished.
For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was punished.
9 He was
assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though
he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it
was the Lord’s will to
crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life an
offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the
will of the Lord will
prosper in his hand.
11 After
he has suffered, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by
his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he
will bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore
I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the
spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was
numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made
intercession for the transgressors.
a.
Today is NOT about Ishtar
i.
The
Assyrian/Babylonian goddess of fertility, war, love and sex
ii.
This is why the
Pagan holiday “Easter” is celebrated with rabbits, which are symbolic of
reproduction, and eggs, which are a symbolic of fertility.
iii. Although Ishtar worship has been around for
approximately 4,500 years, only 1 of the many days of Ishtar worship actually
come near to the day of Passover.
iv.
CONTRARY to Pagan
claims, today is NOT a Pagan holiday taken over by a “new” faith called
“Christianity”, but rather, a HOLY DAY which just happened to take place during
one of their many Pagan days
that fill the calendar.
v.
As we spoke about
in Titus, Paul addressing the Pagan world around us, all things are pure to
those who are pure. We are not celebrating the goddess on this day, therefore
it is OK for us to say “happy Easter” in reference to the Holy Day of Christ’s
resurrection.
vi.
Because THAT is
what we celebrate.
vii.
Passover...the
Holy Day established by God for the remembrance of the day the Lord freed his
people who were enslaved to Egypt.
viii.
A foreshadowing
of His people today (Christians) being freed from the bondage of our Egypt,
sin.
b.
It IS the PASSOVER
i.
Leviticus
23:5 specifies that the festival year begins
with Passover, on the end of the fourteenth day of the month (Nisan 15, which
actually begins at sundown).
ii.
In both the Old
Testament and the New Testament, Passover is the Feast of Salvation.
iii. Jews receiving Salvation from Egypt after the death
of the firstborn, and the blood of the lamb as a covering in the Old Covenant,
and in the New Covenant, salvation from sin after the death of the Firstborn of
God, and the Lamb's blood which does not cover as the foreshadowing example in
the Old, but cleanses, for it is the fulfillment of the promise of God.
iv.
Today, we mark
our bodies (the house of the “spirit”) with the blood of Christ.
v.
Today is a
celebration of Salvation!
c.
Today is a promise of God fulfilled!
i.
Man's
relationship with God was broken because of sin (Genesis 3)
ii.
Through the
atonement of Christ's sacrifice at Passover, He brought us a NEW COVENANT,
purchased with His blood
iii. ANYONE who drinks of this cup (Outwardly accepting
what has taken place in their heart), can receive a New Covenant with God,
through Christ Jesus, and once again, be in fellowship with our Father in
heaven.
iv.
This New Covenant
brings with it forgiveness of sin, a new mind, a renewal of life, and access to
the power of God’s Spirit which allows us protection through the Whole Armor of
God (Ephesians 6), Spiritual
Gifts so that we may be equipped to serve Him (Romans 12:6-8; I Corinthians 12:8-10; I Peter 4:11), and Christ
will begin a work within us, changing us, drawing us closer to what we were
created TO BE, as opposed to what this world has made us (Philippians 1:6), and because of God’s Holy Spirit, we in turn
will produce the fruits of the Spirit in our lives, which is not our
characteristics, but God’s brought into this world through us. (Galatians 5:22)
II. HOW DID
GOD PREPARE HIS PEOPLE FOR THIS DAY?
a.
Through prophecies (approximately +350
individual)
i.
Such as Isaiah 53
ii.
There are
literally thousands (some were repeated in various texts) of prophecies
concerning Jesus, which He fulfilled, proving He was the Christ
iii. The Old Testament (Covenant or contract with God) teaches
of Jesus, and the coming New Testament
iv.
Remember, the
Testaments are COVENANTS (agreements/contracts made with God)
v.
There are
currently 2 contracts with God, the Old which does not save, only reveal our
sin and need for a savior, thus condemning us, and the New which was purchased
in Christ’s Blood, releasing us from the requirements of the first contract,
which is bondage to sin and death as payment of sin.
b.
God also prepared His people by showing His
people through example (or foreshadowing)
i.
Prophecies told
of what was to come, and have been fulfilled by Christ, but foreshadowing SHOWED through
example to the people what was to come!
ii.
God showed what He was going to do to bring
Salvation to His people and renew the relationship that had been broken because
of sin, by saving the Jews from Egypt, using symbolic teachings such as the
blood of a sacrificial lamb over the door stoops, and the death of the firstborn.
a.
In
fact, God revealed His plan of salvation when Adam and Eve first sinned against
God in Genesis 3:21-22 “The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his
wife and clothed them. And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one
of us, knowing good and evil.”
b.
Because of sin against
God, a sacrifice was made, blood was shed, and a covering for man,
foreshadowing Christ coming, shedding His blood for payment.
iii. This foreshadowed what Christ would accomplish and
was revealed to us in the beginning.
c.
Finally, God not
only gave prophecies that were fulfilled
by Christ, and foreshadowing to SHOW
what Christ would accomplish, but Jesus taught before the Cross of what His
mission was, and what OUR mission would be once He left.
d.
Matthew 28:16-20 “Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus
had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some
doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been
given to me. 19 Therefore go and make
disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name
of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I
have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of
the age.”
e.
This is “The Great Commission” and what “we” are called by God to do. Help others
escape the bondage of sin and be reunited in relationship with God the Father
through Christ Jesus and what He accomplished at the cross, thus allowing them
to come into a covenant with Christ, receive the Holy Spirit and allow Christ
to being a work in them, and seal their eternity within the Kingdom of God.
III. HOW DO
WE HONOR PASSOVER TODAY?
a.
Celebrate it as a feast of God!
i.
Not as a ritual, rather a feast of celebration in
honoring God's fulfilled plan of Salvation
b.
Remember it!
i.
As the Israelites
were instructed to do, teach it to our young, so the next generation will know
what God has done!
c.
Many want to celebrate Christmas as Jesus'
birthday, yet;
i.
We know from
scripture Jesus was not born in December
ii.
We were NEVER
told in scripture to celebrate Jesus' birth
iii. Jesus Himself told us in scripture to CELEBRATE HIS
DEATH & RESURRECTION!
a.
At the Passover
feast, the night Jesus was taken into custody, he celebrated with the
Disciples, and had what we call the “Last Supper”, and during the breaking of
bread, and the drinking of wine into the New Covenant, Jesus told them “EVERY
TIME you do this, do this in remembrance of me”
b.
Jesus told them,
every “communion”, as we call it, every breaking of bread, celebrate the Passover,
Jesus' substitutional death & His resurrection!
c.
Why? Because it is ONLY through His atoning
sacrifice that we have a New Covenant, which Jesus told us was purchased with
His blood, which was poured out for the remission of sins; and His body, which
was broken for you and me, on PASSOVER.
CONCLUSION
So, TODAY, Passover,
Easter, resurrection Sunday, whatever we call it, was, is and always will be a
celebration of the Salvation and redemption of God's people!
Let us celebrate
PASSOVER today! Resurrection Sunday!
Feast with family and
friends, give thanks, accept the New Covenant with God the Father, through
Jesus Christ, and HONOR the Lord, by LIVING the Great Commission of Jesus
Christ!
If you have never taken
the opportunity to accept this New Covenant in Christ, then you will be judged
by the Old covenant and found guilty.
Accepting the New
Covenant in Christ is simple.
Accept Jesus Christ died
on the cross to pay the debt of sin, the requirements of the Old Covenant.
Believe that this
payment for your debt through His substitutional atoning death on the cross was
acceptable by God as payment, because God raised Christ from the dead as the
First Fruits.
Confess your sin, and
repent, turn away from it, accepting Jesus as your Lord, serve Him.
And your sins will be
forgiven, and Christ, through the Holy Spirit will begin a new work in you, and
you will become a NEW creation!
The Old will pass
away, and you will be counted among the children of God.
Amen!
CONCLUSION
–
Today being the
first Sunday of the month is communion.
Remember, these
elements in themselves are nothing more than an outward, symbolic expression of
a spiritual truth within us.
The eating and
drinking of these elements changes nothing, but outwardly expresses our
commitment to the Lord, and our willingness to allow Him through His Holy
Spirit to begin the work within us.
It is also an opportunity for us to examine ourselves, to have the Lord
reveal the things in our lives that may be holding us back from Him, our
growth, things that may be causing us to remain in spiritual immaturity.
He is faithful, and willing to change us, but we must submit to Him,
His will, and allow Him to do the great work and reveal the wonderful plans He
has for us in this life.
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Salvation and Getting Saved?
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